DRY EYE

What is Dry Eye?

Dry eye is a common condition that occurs when your eyes don’t produce enough tears or when the tears evaporate too quickly. This leads to dryness, irritation, and discomfort in the eyes. It can result from various factors, including aging, long hours of screen use, certain medications, environmental conditions, or underlying health issues.

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Dry eye Symptoms

Burning

There are a range of symptoms but burning coupled with redness of the eyes and skin around the eyes is a common one.

1

Itching

The perennial itchy eye is usually diagnostic of dry eyes. It can often feel like there is grit in the eye too.

2

Transient blurring

As the tears become unevenly spread over the eyes surface this can cause light scatter and blurring of the vision. Often after a blink the vision improves as the tear film is redistributed by the blink.

3

Sensitivity to light

Sensitivity to light can again be caused by light scatter through an uneven tear film. It can also be a sign of infection, so it is always advised to get your eyes checked should you be suffering with this (Photophobia).

4

Watery eyes

Paradoxically, dry eye can sometimes cause excessive tearing as the eyes overcompensate for dryness.

5

Watery eyes can also be a sign of dry eye syndrome

Eyedrops are the mainstay of treatment for dry eye. Preservative free dry eye drops are always recommended for long term use

Eyelid cleaning is highly recommended for dry eye

NuLids at home eyelid cleansing is a fantastic treatment that can improve the symptoms of dry eye syndrome

What can be done about Dry Eye and Blepharitis?

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Blepharitis

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Why?

What causes dry eye?

Dry eye syndrome occurs when your eyes struggle to efficiently make enough tears. Tears are an important part of your eye health as they help to keep your eyes moisturised, protect them against infections, clear away any debris from the surface of your eyes and keep your vision clear.

A normal tear film consists of three main layers:

Mucin layer – which lines the surface of the eye and helps the tears top stick to the eye
Aqueous layer – this nourishes and protects the eye
Lipid oil layer – sitting on the very surface the oil helps to lubricate the movement of lids whilst blinking and helps to stop the tears evaporating away too quickly

A breakdown in the production of any of these layers will lead to an imbalance in the tear film, which reduces the quality and/or quantity of tears.

Dry eye syndrome causes are usually multifactorial, meaning that there is rarely one stand out cause. Both physical and environment have a huge part to play in the development of dry eye syndrome. Some of the more commons reasons are utlined here.

A blockage in the glands of the eyelid that supply the important oily layer of tears (known as meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD)) – without this layer (the lipid layer), the tears evaporate quicker, causing the eyes to dry out.
Age – as we get older, our eyelids don’t spread tears across the eyes as well when blinking and the glands which supply the components of our tears can become less efficient (similar to when our skin dries more with age)
Working in an air-conditioned environment
Using tech - staring at a screen for a prolonged time means that we don’t blink as efficiently
Trauma or surgery to the eye
Hot or windy environments
Certain underlying medical conditions, like diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis or Sjögren's syndrome.
Side effects of certain medications, such as some antihistamines
Alcohol usage – alcohol can dehydrate the body and therefore reduce the volume of tears your eyes produce
Hormonal changes

What causes blepharitis?

Blepharitis can be caused by:

a type of bacteria that lives on the skin
a skin condition, such as seborrhoeic dermatitis
the glands inside the eyelids not producing enough oil